


Musical

by aphoticdepths



Category: UTAU, Vocaloid
Genre: Angst, F/F, F/M, Gen, Implied/Referenced Rape/Non-con, Implied/Referenced Torture, Magical Boys, Magical Girls, Self-Harm, Songfic, sorta - Freeform
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2014-07-07
Updated: 2014-08-21
Packaged: 2018-02-07 22:10:55
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 8
Words: 12,010
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/1915710
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/aphoticdepths/pseuds/aphoticdepths
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>"I thought this would be wonderful. An adventure. The awesome adventures of Magical Girl XXXX. But this was a lie. It's hell. There's nothing left anymore."</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Rin I

Kagamine Rin was a normal girl, if very hyperactive and peppy. She went to school with everyone else, listened to pop music, crushed on pop stars, played video games, and had a normal life with her twin brother.

Of course, she had no idea of what was going to happen on the day that she went to the orchestra concert. It was a school trip. Rin knew that a lot of other schools were out there today, and that was really cool in its own right, but that wasn't what she was mainly focusing on. What she was focusing on was  _how stupid the entire thing was._

Really? Not only were they going to go to a perfectly good concert hall, but they had to go and waste it for some boring classical music recital? She yawned, and leaned her head on her brother's shoulder. "Len, why is this so  _b_ _oring?_  How long have we been even waiting in line?"

"I don't know." He sighed, and pushed her off. "It'll be really good eventually." Suddenly, he turned around, looking at a girl with long pink hair and a black headband. "Oh my god. Rin. Look at that girl. She's-"

The girl he had been discussing turned around, her icy blue eyes confused. "Yes?"

Len stared at his shoes, face flushed with pure embarrassment."Uh. I just. You're...Megurine Luka. I...Oh my god. I'm a really big fan..."

Rin frowned. "Len, what does her-"

Luka stared at the ground, a blush on her face. "Yes, I am." She walked off, rather fast.

"She was in another uniform. She's from INTERNET!" Len almost squealed the words. "They're a really fancy school...of course, it makes sense that Luka-sama would go there..."

Rin rolled her eyes. "Stop fanboying and just listen to me!"

"But...she's a really famous classical musician. A pianist." Len sighed.

Rin stared at Len. "Traitor! You actually listen to the music!" Heads were starting to turn towards the screaming girl.

Len put up his hands to try to ward her off. "I'm sorry, but-"

"Kagamine-san! Um, excuse me?" The blue-haired boy with the band that marked him as part of the student council rubbed his head sheepishly. "I...you're causing a disturbance, and we're supposed to be quiet in here."

Rin's entire face turned a flaming red to match Len's, and she stared at her school shoes. "Y-Yes, of course, Class President Hatsune! I-I- mean, Kaito-senpai! I mean, Hatsune-senpai! I...er..."

"Thank you." He smiled politely and bowed.

Len snorted, and leaned close to his sister. "And you make fun of me for being impressed at Luka-sama's talent," he whispered.

Rin snorted. "Yeah. Her  _talent,"_ she whispered back, shooting a nervous glance at Kaito.

Len rubbed his forehead. "It has nothing to do with that..." He smirked. "Besides, you wouldn't be one to judge about other girl's  _talent_ , what with your lack of anything like that."

"LEEEEEEEEEEN!" Rin clapped her hands over her mouth. "Ah, sorry, President Hatsune-"

"Big brother Kaito has no reason to talk to you." Before Kaito could say anything else, the vice president of the student council had arrived, her long pigtails trailing behind her.

Rin glared at her. " _Hatsune."_

"Kagamine." Miku shot her a dark glance.

Kaito sighed. " _Please_ don't cause a disturbance, people will get angry at us..."

"Well, of course...for you." Rin blushed again.

Miku rolled her teal eyes. "What an idiot." She snorted.

Kaito frowned. "I really think that you two should just try to be friends...Kagamine-san! Not you, Kagamine-kun, your brother..."

Len, who had wandered off and tried to talk to Luka, turned around from next to the pink-haired girl. "Uh, sorry, but..."

"Just please come over here. You shouldn't get separated from the group.

As Len walked over, a purple-haired boy took Luka's hand. She stood on tiptoes, and kissed him, and the two walked off.

Rin raised his eyebrows. "Len's probably not happy she has a boyfriend..."

Len sighed. "I don't have a crush on her, okay?"

"Hey!" Miku turned, pointing an imperious finger at two girls to the side. "Both of you come here. You may not be at our school, but I still have authority, and you need to do what I say! Now go back to your own school!"

Kaito sighed. "Little sis, you shouldn't-"

The brunette crossed her arms. "What the hell? Shut up."

Her friend, who had long wavy hair bleached until it was nearly white, giggled. "Meiko-nee is right! You don't control us. We do."

"Well...Kaito, back me up here." Miku gestured imperiously to her brother.

Meiko smirked. "What? So the little student council girl thinks she can fight us?"

"All of you are being stupid!" That was screamed as a girl ran onto the scene, her short green hair flying around her and the light glinting off her orange glasses. She dragged a younger girl with long hair of a color that Rin couldn't place behind her, the other girl looking nonplussed at this turn of events.

The purple-haired boy and Luka followed.

The younger girl frowned. "Gumi-senpai, I think-"

"Little sis!" The violet-haired boy's blue eyes were distressed. "You can't do-"

And then the lights went out.

Rin felt Len grab her shoulders, throwing himself over her as they both fell to the ground. She heard screams, but she didn't know what exactly happened.

* * *

Rin didn't know where she was. She felt sheets on her bare skin. Wait...was she even wearing any clothes? No. No, she was not. Rin tried to breathe deeply, but she felt like something was restraining her chest. Was she tied up? She couldn't even see anything. It was all dark.

She was trapped.

All Rin could do was lie there and wait for something to happen. She desperately wanted to move, but the restraints bound her.

She heard a voice, echoing as if it was metallic. "This one has been working particularly well. Not as well as the other ones, but she has taken to it extremely well."

"Good."

"All we need now is the marking..."

"Well? Do it now."

Rin jerked as she felt something coming closer,. She didn't know what it was, but she felt dull heat on her skin. The blonde struggled, but she couldn't escape. Then, her shoulder burned, and Rin was only able to scream before everything disappeared.

She almost thought she heard something, though. "You did well, Rin."

* * *

When Rin woke up at home, she didn't know why her memories of the class trip were so fuzzy, or what the hell the 02 on her shoulder meant.


	2. Chapter 2

When Gumi Kamui came to school, she felt like something weird had happened.

Of course, something weird had. She'd seen a fight, so she'd gone to break it up, like the awesome girl she was(Luka kept being annoyed that she'd dragged her cousin IA into it for some reason), then there had been a blackout, then...She couldn't remember that bit of the trip. Damn weird. She shook her head, trying to clear it. Whatever. She was way too cool for this.

Gumi stared up at the sky, her short hair blowing in the wind. She felt strange, but she had no idea why the reason for that might be. Ah, well, no point in being confused about that. Time to go her own way! Gakupo had been an idiot again, and taken the train with Luka. What a bunch of wimps.

The green-haired girl finally walked up to the gates of the school. She'd been late! That wasn't good, now Gakupo was going to yell at her for being so late...

She heard panting behind her and turned. Gakupo was running towards her, Luka holding his hand. Oh, so they'd been late to...She laughed, attempting to put cruelty and contempt into it. "Ohohohohoho! So, you too are-"

"Gumi, shut up." Gakupo sighed.

"Well, I just wanted to make you feel welcomed." Gumi sniffed. "So-"

"G-G-Gumi..." That shy voice was Luka's. Gumi didn't know how someone as forceful as her brother dated someone as...well, Luka as Luka, but somehow he did. Weird.

"Yeah? What is it?" Gumi smiled at her. Anything that actually got Luka to talk was a bonus.

"What...I just, er, smelled something weird..." Luka coughed.

"HEY! What the hell are you implying-what?" Gumi frowned. There was a strange acrid smell in the area. Something like pollution...

The sky turned dark around them, and winds blew around them. The stench got stronger. Gakupo grabbed Luka, trying to protect her. Gumi stared around her, her watering emerald eyes wide in shock. What was going on?

Something descended from the sky. It was tall and elongated, made of the same black smoke as the clouds. The acrid stench became stronger, sending Gumi to her knees in a fit of coughing.

"V...ocaloidssssssss..." The words sounded like a howling wind.

Gumi wiped her eyes. "Vo-" She coughed again, barely able to breathe.  _What's a Vocaloid? Why are you calling me that?_

"Vocaloid...dieeeeeeeeeeeeeee..." The fog got stronger, and Gumi struggled for air. And then-

A bullet pierced through the monster, shredding the dark and polluted air. The fog dissipated, and Gumi took a deep breath. Behind her, she could see Luka and Gakupo in a similar condition. She looked up to see who had saved them and saw a woman with white-blonde hair standing there there, holding a gun of some kind. It didn't look like the ones Gumi had seen on TV, seeming almost futuristic, weirdly enough.

"You're lucky all three of you were late." She had a crisp British accent, enunciating the Japanese words strangely. "If you were not, we might have had trouble. Come with me."

"...we have to go to school." Luka stared at the woman, her eyes wide in shock.

"I know this may be hard for you to accept, but you have to do this. I do not joke when I say that the fate of the world depends on it. Follow me."

"What is..." Gumi trailed off, trying to make sense of what had just happened.

"Well?"

Gumi shot a glance at the other two, and all three followed the woman into the black car outside.

*line break*

Gumi was sitting rather nervously on a hard couch. Luka and Gakupo sat on either side of her, both sitting up straight with their faces impassive. Gumi wasn't sure why they needed to do that-it was just a meeting, right?

The woman crossed her arms. "My name is Miriam. I am a scientist for Yamaha-that's the corporation who built this building, and gave you your mission. First, I have some things to explain. You three and seven other children...all of you were taken here during the blackout. That's why you have no memories of the trip. We said you were hurt."

Gumi raised her hand to her mouth, nibbling on her knuckles. It was a weird nervous habit, but..."That's  _scary!_ "

Gakupo rose out of his seat. "What the hell?! What did you do to us? What did you think you were doing?" Luka grabbed his arm, but he shook her off.

"Saving the world." Miriam gave a small smile. "That monster you fought...it and its kind are destroying this world. If no one had fought back, we would all be destroyed. These guns are strong, but...that was one of their weakest. We can't fight them on our own. So we gave you and the other nine power to fight them with. You are now Vocaloids."

Gumi frowned. "Does that mean I'm a magical girl or something?"

Gakupo snorted. "And why couldn't you do this on volunteers? Why us?"

"I...yes. You can't do that." Luka stood up, staring at her feet. "It...I think it's..." She sat back down as Miriam turned her cold grey gaze on her.

"Yes, kind of. You can transform. And you ten..." Miriam sighed. "You had potential. Enough power potential to be able to fight all of these, even what's controlling them."

Gumi grinned. "Cool! That's so cool! Can I do it now?"

"Gumi, no-" Gakupo turned to her. What an idiot. He was being so  _embarrassing._ But enough out of him! She had to become a magical girl!

"Not yet. A monster would have to attack first-"

An alarm blared, and all four turned.

Miriam smirked again. "Like now."

Gumi gasped, heart beating. She was actually a magical girl. This was insane... "What do I have to do?"

"Gumi,  _don't do it."_ Gakupo grabbed her shoulder. "I...you'll get hurt. You can't get hurt."

"Gakupo, I can fend for myself!" She shook him off. "Luka, tell him-"

"I..." Luka stared at her feet, and then looked back up, determination in her eyes. "I agree. It is t-too dangerous."

"I..." Gumi glared at them. "You can't stop me from going."

"Fine. You can go. But don't think for one damn second that I won't be with you." Gakupo glared at her.

Miriam smiled politely. "Good. Thank you, Gakupo-san. I was planning on asking you for that." Though the purple-haired boy bristled with anger, he said nothing. "Gumi-san, what you have to do is sing. You'll know what you have to sing once you start. Keep singing to fight the monster. It works like magic."

Gumi nodded fiercely, and walked into the elevator, Gakupo trailing her steps.

As it rose, she thought about the way she had to enter. Of course, she just had to ride the elevator up to the lobby and get out and fight it if it was in there, but she had to find some way to do that dramatically. That was what was important...

It dinged, and the doors opened.

Gumi slowly walked out, wishing there was some way for her to have a breeze blowing her hair and clothes. She took off her glasses.

Of course, the monster wasn't there, she thought. She put her glasses back on, and kicked the clear door. It swung open, and she stepped out.

Some _t_ _hing_  was there, a hulking giant with skin that was a pulsing blue. It grabbed a car, and smashed it on the sidewalk. People on the street were running. Time to get dramatic.

Gumi took a deep breath, and began to sing. A dramatic entrance wouldn't work, would it? She had to do this.

 _"The sum of my thoughts on everything, If they were expressed in just these words, There's darling, I suppose, but burden too. Is that the extent of me and you?"_  She felt a wind blow around her as green lights floated around her, lifting up her hair and transforming her school uniform into some kind of strange frilly outfit. Her glasses had turned into a pair of goggles. A massive fork and knife materialized in her hands.

Gumi grinned. This was cool-

And then, sadness. Pure sadness. She dropped to her knees, tears falling from her eyes.

"I'm sorry-"

"Gumi!"

She couldn't turn her head, but she felt a hand on her shoulders.

She was nothing. She was worthless...The sadness was so strong, she could barely do anything.

"Sing. Please!" Gakupo shook her shoulders.

But...

"I'll fucking kill Miriam...Gumi! You're a magical girl, right? Do it! Please."

She stood shakily, as the monster lumbered towards them, and drew the fork and knife. Her voice only shook with tears a littl _e. "W-Who is it, may I ask, who's being loved? The way that it's been for all that time...Gone away, no longer to be seen, although I know I should yet be feeling. When time has passed, and you forget, reflections fade like SUNSET!"_  As she hit the monster with both weapons and screamed, it disappeared.

Gumi grabbed Gakupo's shoulders, and cried. She didn't know when she stopped crying, but Miriam had taken them both into the building somewhere in the middle.

Now that she stopped, she had transformed back, and was sitting on the couch holding her knees to her chest.

Gakupo was glaring at Miriam. "You are a monster, and I'm not going to be part of this!"

"You have to."

"You  _made my sister cry._  You kidnapped kids. You fucking...You're a monster. A sick, fucked up..."

"Luka-san." Miriam sighed. "Explain to him."

"N-No..." Luka stared at her feet. "I'm with Gakupo, still. Y-You can't do this to us. It's illegal."

"G-Gakupo-nii." Gumi was still a little shaky, but she patted her brother on the arm.

"What is it?" He turned, eyes full of worry.

"I'm going to do it." She smiled wanly. "I have to..."

Miriam sighed. "And you're her partner. You back her up, she backs you up. You both have to-"

"No." Gakupo sighed. "Gumi, I love you, but I'm not going to let you do this to me. I'm going to get Luka, and neither of us are going to be part of your sick games. Gumi, you are going to join us."

Gumi shook her head. "No." She felt sick as she said it, but...she couldn't. If they were going to do that, they were going to destroy the world. "Sorry."

Gakupo stared at her for a second, and walked away.

She had to do this. She had to save the world.


	3. Len I

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> As the songs used for magical girl transformations get more little-known, I will credit them.  
> This one is Drowning in a Wave of Sadness.

Len was tired. It was the middle of the night, and Rin snored so hard he was having trouble sleeping. God, his sister was annoying... He pulled the pillow over his head, trying to muffle the noise, and felt a hand shake his shoulder.

"Mmmm...Rin, I'm not gonna protect you, you're not six anymore..." His sister kept asking him annoying things like 'protect me from monsters'. Of course, those didn't exist.

Before she'd even said a word, Len knew something was wrong. Her voice seemed deeper and her nails longer... "I'm not Rin."

Len woke in a flash, throwing off the blankets and trying to muster an intimidating glare at the invader. Rin was still sleeping, so he had to be quiet... "Get the hell out of my room." A boy in his boxers and a T-shirt might not be that scary, but he'd try to be.

"My name is Gumi!" The girl...yes, she had broken up the fight at the school trip. She was still wearing her uniform-a white shirt, blue skirt, and a yellow tie. But what the hell was she doing in their room? "I need you and your sister to come with me."

Len glared at her. "Hell. No. Now get away from us. Now." He tried to summon all the authority he had never had.

"Well-" Gumi smiled.

"I SAID NO!" He screamed the words at her. The girl flinched back.

From the top of the bed, he heard a groan. "Mmmm...whassit?" Rin raised her head, rubbing her eyes. Her hair was loose and messy, sticking in every direction.

"Rin, go back to sleep." Len hissed. "This isn't-"

Gumi grabbed his arm, distress in her emerald eyes. "No! She can't. There's a monster!"

"A monster...?" This was ironic in all the worst ways.

"What's going on?" Rin asked.

"Stay up there." On Rin's part of the bed, she'd be safe. "Rin, this is important."

"I'm going to-"

"DON'T!"

The girl cleared her throat. "A _hem._ "

"All right. As long as Rin-" His sister had already climbed down.

She crossed her arms, glaring at him. "I'm going to listen. And I'm going to do what I can to fight the monster."

What had happened to his sister? She used to be scared of things like this...or maybe it was just because he said she couldn't.

The girl frowned. "The monster's going to attack soon, so I have to tell you right now."

"Right." Len gave her a dubious glance-

And then a star burst into their room. Well, it wasn't technically a star, but...it was flames. A massive ball of burning white flames.

"You have to sing!" the girl yelled above the crackling

Len sighed, and opened his mouth.

 _"At the rate my limbs are growing, two at a time, the things I can love are also growing, two, three at a time. They're growing at a stupid rate, s-so, I have to throw them out, don't I?"_  Golden sparkles floated around him as his pajamas turned into a white sailor top with black accents and black shorts. He had arm accessories and high boots. As Len sang, he felt  _something._  It was-

_I need to be better, I need to help you, I'll never be good enough..._

Despair.

Len felt himself falter, and then he heard something.

"Len! Idiot! What the hell are you doing!?" Rin. Horror on her face.

He wasn't good enough, he had to die, die, die...No. He had to try to be strong. If he couldn't, Gumi and Rin... He grabbed the bedpost, and stared at the fire.  _"That's why, in order to be able to love a lot, this greedy me one day decided to stop loving the clumsy me."_  His voice shook only a little as something grew from the floor. It was a twisted, monstrous hand. It reached towards the fire, and squeezed.

The despair was almost too much, but he had to keep singing. Rin and Gumi depended on it. He wasn't worth anything, so it wasn't important... _"I...I...This life that god granted me, this life I received from my mother, I didn't use it like others so I threw it out with the morning trash."_  The feeling was crushing his heart, but he had to keep singing to destroy it.  _"Without anyone holding expectations for me, the raise of the curtain approaches. The curtain has been raised on the show of my life without a single audience member-"_ The hand crushed the flame, and Len fell to the ground.

He faintly heard Rin calling his name.

* * *

Len opened his eyes on a vaguely familiar bed. What had happened? He didn't remember anything...and then they hit him.

No. That couldn't have happened. It was impossible. But, if it was impossible, then where was he and why had he had such a detailed dream?

Then, a golden-haired comet hit him and further thought was impossible. "LEN!" his sister cried.

He groaned. "Get off." She did, and he saw that she was wearing an ill-fitting suit.

"But I  _have_ to hug you! You passed out, and you were crying and screaming, but you're back! I'm so glad you're okay!" Rin smiled brightly. It hadn't been a dream after all. He felt that despair again.

_I hate you, I hate you, you're worthless, you'll never be worth anything. You should just die._

"Yeah." He forced a smile onto his face. "What happened..."

"Gumi says that you and me are Vocaloids. Which is kinda like superheroes. We have to save the world by fighting monsters like that!" The way she smiled and said that made it sound like she couldn't think of anything better than that.

"Do I..." Len took a deep breath. "Do I have to do that again?"

"You can do songs more other times. She said they're kind of like spells-well, Gumi didn't. Her boss, Miriam did. She gave me this suit. She also said we're partners. We back each other up." Rin said. "So...next time, you let me fight them. Okay?"

Part of Len was worried for his sister, and part of him had a fucked-up happiness in that he wouldn't have that happen to him anymore. God, he was a monster. He was worthless. "I will. But I'll back you up, okay?" If she became sad, he'd fight instead of her. He had to protect Rin from this.

"Of course!"

"Hey, did Gumi have a partner?" The question flitted into his mind.

Rin sighed. "She said he didn't want to work with us. For some reason."

Len realized something, jerking upright. "What time is it!?"

Rin rolled her eyes. "You're such a nerd. 6:30 AM. Don't worry. Miriam said that she could make it so everyone wouldn't worry and we won't have to go to school."

"Really?" Len frowned. "...Don't we need to go to school?"

Rin grinned.

"We should." Len frowned.

"Really?" She scoffed, tossing her short hair. "Len, you're so boring. But-If you go to school, Miriam said that you should talk to Class President Hatsune and  _Hatsune._ "

* * *

Len walked into the school, and noticed something wrong as soon as he got into his first class. The teachers were fine, but everyone froze up when he mentioned Rin's absence. None of the teachers were willing to say that she was. It just was uncanny. The students didn't seem to care. Had he missed something?

But that didn't make sense. That wasn't how things were supposed to go... Finally, he cornered the Hatsunes at lunch. If anyone would know this, they would?

"I...Rin. My sister. Is she absent?"

Miku hugged him. Len flinched back at that, but let her do it.

"I'm so glad!" she said, tears welling up in her eyes. "I...I kept saying that she was absent and should be reported, but  _no one noticed_ , they ignored me, and I'm so, so glad that you knew..."

Kaito smiled, nodding. He wasn't quite as emotional as his sister over this, but that was understandable. Even if it wasn't friendly, Miku and Rin were close enough that they cared about each other.

Len cleared his throat. "Some people...I...you guys are superheroes."

Kaito stared at him. "What are you talking about? You don't make any sense. I'm sorry, but-"

"I know, I know, it doesn't make any sense, but that's what they said. At the school trip...they took us. Now you're superheroes." Len sighed, heat flooding to his face. This was so embarrassing.

"That's crazy!" Miku burst out. She backed away from him, her teal eyes suspicious.

"They have Rin." Len stared at the ground when he said that. "She's with them now."

Kaito backed away slowly, while Miku just stared at him.

"You have to come there after school. It's to save the world."

Miku took a deep breath. "We'll go."

"Sis, I don't-"

Miku glared at him. " _We'll go._ But only if you let me see Ri-Kagamine." Kaito quickly nodded, not wanting to provoke Miku any further.

Len nodded, and felt a tinge of regret.

He felt like he was leading people on into making some kind of deal with the devil. But that couldn't be true, could it?

* * *

As soon as they got there, Miriam led them down the elevator, and into a room where Rin and Gumi were sitting. Rin had a smile on her face, but Gumi's face was puffy and swollen, almost like she'd been crying.

Rin waved. "Len! President Shion! Gumi fought a monster! I didn't see, but her singing was really pretty!"

Oh, so Gumi had that too. Even so...

"Kagamine!" Miku grinned malevolently, striding towards his sister. "You  _need_  to start showing up to school, you idiot. If you had done anything else, I would have had to kill you!" Len looked away. This was too ridiculous.

"Well, Hatsune, you're just jealous." Rin smirked, crossing her arms.

Kaito stared. "I...so, is it..."

"Yeah! Do you need me to transform? I haven't tried yet, but I want to!" Rin practically jumped out of her seat with excitement.

"Miriam-san. Are they partners?" Len had to clear things up.

"No."

Miku and Kaito turned to stare at the white-haired woman.

"They were both matched with the one who fit their Vocal Energy best. That was not each other. They were Megurine-san and Haigo-san-that was the brown-haired girl. My research indicates that she leads a gang."

Miku frowned. "Well-"

At that point, the alarm blared.

"There's a monster. We will drive right now. Rin and Len, and Gumi just in case. Kaito and Miku, you will stay here."

"Yes." Len nodded.

"Got it!" Rin punched her fist in the air.

"Now." Miriam smiled. "Let's go." Over her suit, she wore a long black coat which swished as she turned.


	4. Gakupo I

 

 

 

Gakupo held Luka's hand as the two walked through the park. It was a nice day, really. But he couldn't get his mind out of what might be happening to Gumi.

She was his little sister. It was his job to take care of her. And whatever was happening...

No. She had made her choices, even if he should save her.

Luka's cousin, Aria, had joined them in the park, and read on a bench. She had been there too. Was she going to become a Vocaloid? She had better not. She was too sweet for that sort of thing. If something like that-

Something erupted from the path in front of them, a beast made of thorns with a massive fanged maw.

Gakupo tried not to scream, but he grabbed onto Luka's arm. Luka turned to run, but Gakupo tried to stop her.

"No...we need to stay here." He wasn't going to let them hurt people. He wouldn't work with those monsters at Yamaha, but he would fight for himself. That was what would make sense.

There were no people in the park but them. This was what he had to do.

" _Shall we begin? It's showtime_."

Gakupo felt something settle over him as purple sparkles flew around him. He was wearing some kind of bodysuit with a white kimono over it. He felt a smile creeping onto his face. This felt... _good._ He was in control. He would be able to destroy it. He threw the razored playing card that had appeared in his hand at the monster. He couldn't kill it yet. No, he had to play with it for a bit. Wouldn't that be just wonderful?

"...Sto..." The voice was muffled. He couldn't hear it.

" _The invitation is for the beautiful you. How does one game sound? Please allow me some of your time._ " He threw another one, and heard the beautiful scream of pain. He threw his head back and laughed and laughed and laughed.

Something grabbed his arm. "GAKUPO-NII, STOP IT!"

Gumi. "I..." He felt the bloodlust abate, and threw the second card that appeared at its head. Good. A clean death. "What...I was..."

A monster. A sicko. He couldn't let that happen again...

Gumi swallowed, her hand still around his forearm. "I...can you please work with us?"

This way, he would have Gumi. She would be able to try and keep hold of him. Stop him from killing anyone... They were monsters, but he had no other choice.

"Are Luka and Ia okay?" That was what was important. Not him.

"Yeah." Gumi took a shaky breath, letting go of his arm. He'd scared her... "Rin and Len-two of the other Vocaloids-have them."

Gakupo swallowed again. "This is-"

And then a thorny vine pushed itself up from the ground, reaching for them and knocking them both back. A cage of vines sprung up around the siblings, trapping them inside.

Gumi gritted her teah. "I...right. I'm-"

"No." Gakupo took a deep breath, and took her hand. "We both are. I need precision, something to cut through these vines." They came closer as he talked. "You need to get the base. I'll go first.  _Do you consent to the rulebook? Compassion is a useless affection. You want a favor from me. Penalties are inevitable._ " Through the growing desire to maim it, to make it suffer, he concentrated on his sister's hand in his, and drew the cards in his other hands. And he danced, cutting through the vines with the cards easily. He stopped, trying to draw himself away from the bloodlust. He moved his hand to grip Gumi's wrist-she'd need both hands free.

" _Real is good? It's not so. I'll always answer no. I hesitate away, I'm still a coward. Over a contract, we speak. I'm sinking down again; you've got me and it's in you where I'll always end."_ Gumi's transformation was quick, and she only faltered from the despair a little this time. She shook Gakupo's hand off, jumped into the air, and pierced the reforming beast with both weapons. Once it had been destroyed, she didn't let the tears fall, but he could see her holding them back.

Gakupo wasn't as restrained. He fell to his knees, trembling all over. He never wanted to feel that sick pleasure again...

Luka was the first to break the silence, and ran over to him, bending down to look into his eyes.

"I...will you both have to do that again?"

"Yes." The blond boy-hadn't he gone up and talked to Luka at the school trip?-had a world of darkness in his eyes. "They will, and you will, and we all will."

"That's..." Luka stared at the ground.

Gakupo wanted to comfort her, but what could he do?

* * *

They'd both gotten better and gone back, now sitting with the rest of the Vocaloids.

Gakupo had been hugged by Luka as soon as he'd gotten in, and he'd broken free as quickly as possible.

He admired her resoluteness, but...if that would happen every time he used his magic, he couldn't even risk it. He had to try to get her away, until they could finish. She couldn't-

"Gakupo?"

Despite what he'd tried to convey, she'd sat down next to him.

"Ah...nothing." He forced a smile. "While we're waiting for Miriam, who's your partner?"

"Hatsune-san. The girl from the student council."

Good. Hatsune would keep Luka out of fights. That way, she wouldn't get hurt.

"Gakupo...what are you thinking?" She frowned, looking into his eyes.

"Nothing." And then he sighed. He couldn't lie to Luka. "I think that..."

Luka sighed. "What?"

"We should break up. Until this fight is over...I don't want you to get hurt. It would be-"

"What." Her eyes widened. They were such a beautiful blue...Luka was beautiful, and he loved her more than anything, but...

Gakupo stood up. "You saw that!"

"I...Gakupo, I'm not...I can fend for myself!" She stood up, glaring at him.

"No. You can't." Gakupo walked away. "We are stopping." He walked over to his sister, trying not to look at Luka.

His sister stared at him for a moment, and then slapped him.

"Gumi, what-"

"You are an idiot." Gumi sighed. "And...arrgh. You are an idiot!" She snorted, and walked over to Luka.

And a monster. He couldn't let Luka near him...it was wrong to let even Gumi near him.

The doors whooshed open, and Miriam walked in.

"I have talked to the others at Yamaha."

"And?"

"You need to find the other two. That's a matter of major import right now."

Miku nodded. "And? We'll need to know what's going on. Where are they?"

"That's easy..."

* * *

"Waaaaah! Plant-san got hurt!" The magenta-haired girl stared up at the redhead tearily.

They patted her head. "Sorry, Queen Teto. Your monsters aren't quite strong enough yet."

"But...Ritsu...I don't want them to die. Those meanies..." She sniffled. "Why are they destroying my pets?"

Ritsu smiled. "They want to protect them. The...humans."

Teto frowned. "But...why? Humans are bad! Why would people like us not want to fight the humans?"

"Don't worry, we'll get rid of them-"

"I don't want to get rid of them." Teto pouted. "I want to be friends with them."

"They want to get rid of you."

Teto was silent for a bit. "...Ritsu, will you get rid of them for me? They're scary. I don't like them."

"Yeah. Yeah...as Namine Ritsu, War Leader of the UTAU, I say that I will kill everyone scary who hurts Queen Teto."

 


	5. Rin I

Rin sighed, fidgeting in her seat.

Everyone had gone-Kaito and Ia to meet their partners, the rest to fight any monsters that might arise. She was so  _e_ _xcited_ , she was going to get to use her powers...(well, hopefully).

But there was a sick feeling in her stomach. What was it, and why? She was so confused...

Being a magical girl was awesome. Right? She squeezed her brother's hand nervously. She'd seen the look on his face. She would transform. She wouldn't make Len cry. She wouldn't let him be sad. They were siblings, so if one was sad, the other would be. So...

The voice came from behind her. "Kagamine. What are you thinking about?" Hatsune stared at her, teal eyes intense.

"Just about what this is about..." She smiled. Hatsune wouldn't stop bugging her otherwise.

Hatsune shot a glance at the others. The car that they were in was big, probably big enough to count as a limousine. The two of them were directly in the middle, where no one else could hear them well(except maybe Len, but both he and the pink-haired girl who was Hatsune's partner seemed to be in worlds of their own). Still, she lowered her voice. "I feel I should tell you something."

"What is it?" Rin whispered back.

"I don't believe in this nonsense."

Rin's eyes widened. Here they were,  _actual magical girls._ They had amazing powers(or at least, they would when they got to transform). And Hatsune...was denying it? "What?"

Hatsune tried to lower her voice even more. "Or at least, I think we shouldn't trust Miriam." She cast a nervous glance towards the woman.

"What? Why?" Rin asked, out loud. She saw Len gave her a strange glance, but she blushed and ignored it, lowering her voice to a whisper again. "What are you talking about?"

"The markings. You have one. I saw..."

Rin instinctively covered her shoulder where the 02 was. "Stalker much?"

Hatsune tossed her hair. "Hmph. Kagamine, don't take it as a compliment. I just saw it when we arrived here." She noticed a faint tinge of red on the teal-haired girl's cheeks. "You...th-the suit you borrowed from Miriam doesn't fit you."

"Shut up, Hatsune." If that girl was  _lusting after her..._ nah, that was too weird for her to even contemplate. Hatsune must have just been annoyed that she was breaking dress code. That had to be it.

"I have one too." Hatsune whispered.

Rin, who had turned away to try to convey to that idiot that the conversation was over, turned again. " _What?_ " What the hell was that idiot Hatsune talking about?

"Yes. And?" Hatsune smiled. "I believe that Yamaha gave us these."

Rin stared at her, trying to put what she just said together. Hatsune had to be joking. There was no way..."...why?" It was the only thing she could think to say. The people at Yamaha wanted to  _help_ them...

Right?

"Did you...no, you didn't. At school, no one acted like they knew you were there. I asked, and no one did anything. It was terrifying...When I found that your brother remembered, I almost cried..." There was a tremble in Hatsune's voice. "Tell me. If Yamaha could do that, what else could they do? Perhaps, erase ten student's memories of a school trip."

Rin stared at Hatsune as the car drew to a stop.

"Well? Let's find ourselves some mysterious girls!" Gumi punched her fist in the air, turning back to them.

Miriam walked out of the car, her long black coat swirling around her. "According to my research, they're some kind of delinquents."

Kaito gasped. "I...we're supposed to team up with-"

Miriam sighed. "Indeed. A rather famous gang, from what I heard. The brown-haired one-your partner-is the leader."

Rin sniffed. So Class President Hatsune was supposed to be partnered with some scary gangster...no. She couldn't even imagine that one. It would be a far better idea for  _her_ to be his partner...

"All right." Miriam smiled. "Team up with your partner-Kaito and Ia, you two go together-and try to find them."

Rin nodded. "Len! We're going!" She grabbed her brother by the hand. "Let's go."

Len nodded, and the two set off. The sun shone down on the twins as they walked down the street, a slight breeze blowing Rin's hair.

It was actually a pretty nice day. Too bad that she'd been stuck underground being tested for 'vocal energy synchronization'. Boooooooooring. It was still better than school, if only because there was no work. She'd go to school tomorrow, if only to avoid the tests. Definitely not because of the look in Hatsune's eyes...

She'd looked so terrified and sad. That wasn't the face she'd expected to see on her archrival about her not being there. That was just weird and creepy, and Rin wasn't comfortable with it at all. Still, it had nothing to do with her decision at all.

"Rin..."

"What?"

"You just were lost in thought or something. You should try to focus."

Rin huffed. "And you should try to lighten up."

She caught a glimpse of a sad expression on Len's face, but it quickly vanished. Rin wanted to smack him-she was his  _sister_! He shouldn't have to lie to her! He should just...

She caught a glimpse of someone walking towards them. That frilly dress...yes, she did look like the girl with bleached hair from the trip.

Good. That was one down. (Why had they even been there, anyway? It didn't make sense...)

"Hey!" Rin waved her arms around.

Len hissed, and pressed his palm to his face. "Rin! What-"

"You! Cute girl in the frilly dress! We need to talk to you!"

The girl turned. Yep, definitely that girl. Rin just had to get her to Miriam...

_"We can't trust Yamaha."_

No. Whatever Miku said, Yamaha had what they needed to fight the monsters.

The girl walked over to them, her platform shoes clicking on the pavement. "Who are you?" She giggled."Why do you think I'm cute!"

"Rin, don't-"

Rin walked towards the girl. "Hey. You were at that trip-"

The girl blinked her amber eyes. "What trip? I just wanted to listen to the orchestra."

Rin stopped in her tracks. Well, it looked like Hatsune had been wrong about something. "Huh. Well, I was there-"

"Yeah. You were arguing with that annoying girl! Your bow is really cute, by the way." The girl poked her white bow.

"Uh...thanks. Anyway..." Rin grinned. "This is going to sound really stupid."

"Really?"

"Yeah. You're a magical girl."

The girl's eyes opened, and she clasped her black-gloved hands over her mouth. "What?"

From the shadows where Rin and Len had been hiding, Len groaned.

"What was that noise?" The girl looked towards Len.

"Nothing." Rin grinned. "But about my question-"

"Yeah. You're crazy!" The girl laughed, a hint of cruelty in it. "If you excuse me, I'm going to go back with my nee-san."

"Was that the brown-haired girl?"

"Yes." The girl looked slightly uncomfortable.

"Well, she's one too. And so am I. It sounds crazy, but-"

At that point, a building exploded.

The girl stared at it, clapping her hands over her mouth. Rin ducked, grabbing the girl by the arm to try to protect her from the debris. They both hit the ground.

Len had already come out of the shadow. He sighed, shot a glance at her, and held out his hands.

 _"At the rate my limbs are growing, two at a time, the things I can love are also growing, two, three at a time. They're growing at a stupid rate, so, I have to throw them out, don't I?"_ This time, he tried to hide the despair on his face, but she could see it as his clothes transformed into a sailor suit.

Rin couldn't take this. Her brother intentionally hurting himself like this...

She stood up, trying not to look at the girl or Len. It might cause her despair, but she couldn't let Len be hurt.

" _It won't stop. It won't stop. My sighing...Why have I become like this? This is pointless, isn't it. I understand that. I'm sorry."_ She saw the sparkles that heralded a transformation. Hers were golden, just like her brother's. The transformation was quick-weird, even her outfit looked like her brother's. A white sailor top, and shorts that were ridiculously short.

She felt the despair, so intense-and then something strange.

Happiness?

And then things were flashing before her eyes, so quickly that she couldn't count them-

_Her brother in the hospital, her crying over him-Her in a strange outfit, crying-Sighs, sighs, everywhere-An angel like her brother-And..._

She had no idea what those memories that weren't hers meant, but...She wasn't despairing. She was happy. Wistful, perhaps, but she was happy.

And, with a bright smile on her face, she turned towards the explosion that was still breaking the sidewalk.

 _"It won't stop. It won't stop. My sighing. Why have I become like this? Just breathing is pointless, isn't it. Turn into happiness already, geez."_  The golden light bathed her, and she floated off the ground on-were those  _wings_? She put out her hands, and a soft wave of wind blew out from her. The ground knit back together, debris reforming and falling back. Within moments, it didn't look like an explosion had ever been there.

Rin laughed. This was  _awesome._  She felt strangely melancholy, but the joy was enough to destroy that.

From below, she saw someone with long red hair and a lacy purple dress  _glare_  at her, but even the sheer venomous hate of that person's gaze wasn't enough to shatter her joy.

They disappeared in an orange flash.

Rin flew back down to ground, and transformed back, and turned to Len.

"Hey! Len! That was awesome, wasn't it-"

And she stopped.

The mysterious girl looked overjoyed and enchanted, but Len...

Before she had looked away, she'd seen hate in his eyes.


	6. Len II

Len wanted to strangle Rin in that moment, and he didn't know why. He'd transformed back, of course, because he didn't want any of that horrifying despair, that feeling that he was pathetic and that no one loved him and that he'd never amount to anything unless he died.

And Rin didn't have that. He'd seen it in her face-that sheer joy.

And then he'd seen more in it. He'd seen his and Gumi's tears, and the sheer terror that Gakupo had, and the fixed smile that was on all three of their faces-and compared it to the pure joy on his sister's face.

He should be happy for his sister.

As the rainbow-haired girl squealed over how cute Rin was and how awesome her powers were, Len tried to smile. Rin should be happy. His own happiness didn't matter. He should be happy for Rin. He  _had_ to be happy for Rin. That was what a big brother was supposed to do.

Why wasn't he happy?

And then, running towards them...Luka, Miku, and the brown-haired girl. In fact, everyone else was running towards the three of them.

The younger girl detached from his sister and shot towards the brown-haired girl. "Onee-san! Onee-san! You won't believe this! This girl's a magical girl-"

The girl raised an eyebrow. "Yeah, Mayu-chan. That's what I was told." She shot a suspicious glance towards Luka. God. Why couldn't people actually believe them...well, he wouldn't if a giant monster just happened by. He didn't at first.

But he couldn't exactly deny it now.

Luka frowned. "Len-san. What exactly...you were here, and the three of us were not, but-"

"Where's the monster?" Gumi cut in.

"Gumi!" Gakupo glared at her. "Be polite-"

"Actually, I didn't see one." Rin frowned.

All eyes turned to her, except the two newbies.

"What are you idiots talking about?" The brunette sighed.

"Ah..." Kaito turned to her. "We...there are monsters. We have to fight them." He frowned. "Are you Meiko, by any chance?"

The girl stared at him, raising an eyebrow. "Yes."

"Good. Uh..." Kaito sighed. "This is going to sound crazy. But you're kind of a magical girl."

She stared at him, eyes completely blank.

Len moved in. Kaito may have been his sister's crush, but he was an idiot. He pitied that Meiko girl. "We'll let Miriam explain to you when we're back at headquarters."

The girl snorted. "And what makes you think that I'm going to even go back to your 'headquarters'?"

"Because the world will end if you don't." Len shrugged. "But I guess it's your choice..."

She frowned, but nodded reluctantly. Len stifled a sigh. At least he was good with words-or better than Kaito

"Right. Uh." He cleared his throat. The rest of the group was still absorbed in their own conversations. "Er."

"EVERYBODY LISTEN!"

What? Len stared at Miku, who was standing there with her arms crossed. Well, at least she was trying to get attention to him...even if it was  _Miku._

The teal-haired girl stomped her foot. "Len is trying to make some kind of speech. So listen to him. If you don't, I'll-"

"Thanks, and you don't really need to continue." He rubbed the back of his head nervously. He wasn't really good at public speaking, and never had been, but he had to at least try to get them to work together.

"Uh. Since there's two people new here. We know each other already, but...introductions. And trying to explain." With every word, Len felt more blood go to his face. God, this was so embarrassing. "Uh...I'm Kagamine Len. I'm a high school first year. Uh...I'm a Leo?"

Miku rolled her eyes, and Len felt his blush intensify. He'd just embarrassed himself... "My name is Hatsune Miku. I am a first year at Crypton Academy, just like Kagamine-kun. I am the vice president of the student council."

The brown-haired girl rolled her eyes. "Haigo Meiko. My school's not that important, but I'm a third year. I don't see why I should give you any fact about me."

Kaito sighed. "Er...I'm Hatsune Kaito. Miku's big brother. I'm a third year at their school. Miku and Len's, that is." He rubbed the back of his head again, smiling awkwardly.

Rin smiled brightly. "I'm Kagamine Rin. I'm Len's twin, so that explains about my school and grade. I really like oranges!" She smiled brightly.

The white-haired girl raised her hand. "I'm Usano Mayu! I go to Meiko-nee's school, and I'm a first year. I have-"

"Mayu." Meiko glared at the younger girl.

"Right!" Mayu blushed. "Sorry, Meiko-nee!"

Ia blinked. "My name is Megurine Aria, but please call me Ia. I go to Internet Academy. I am a third year in middle school. It seems I am the youngest here."

Luka stared at her feet. "Ah...m-my name is Megurine Luka. I go to Internet Academy and I'm a third year in high school..."

Gakupo coughed to attract attention. "I am Kamui Gakupo. Same as Luka for school and grade. And my sister Gumi-" he gestured. "Is in our school, second year."

"GAKUPO!" Gumi whined. "I wanted to introduce myself!"

"Uh." Len sighed. "Well, that's done..." Sisters were hard to deal with for everyone, it seemed. He felt sympathy for the purple-haired boy, but that was not important currently. Really, he didn't know what was important anymore.

"Ahem."

There was a small commotion as everyone turned to stare at Miriam. The white-haired woman had moved in without anyone noticing...

Len didn't trust her. But Rin did, and so...he had to pretend for now.

"Now that all ten have been gathered, there will be a full briefing. I need you all to get in the car. I am going to explain everything."

* * *

"Ritsu-chan! Ritsu-chan! Are you all right?" Teto tackled the redhead to the ground in a hug. "Did they hurt you?"

"That blonde girl almost did." Ritsu sighed. "Idiot. Why one of  _us_  would even want to protect those pathetic humans...I hate them already."

Teto frowned. "Ritsu-chan, do you need anyone else? You sound-"

Ritsu glared at her. "Of course not. I do things on my own. I don't need the others."

"But it's scary." Teto stared up at Ritsu. "I don't want you near the scary humans. They might hurt you..."

"None of your friends are going to be hurt by those...things." Ritsu hissed. "Me and maybe some of the others-"

"Tei and Ruko. They're both tough and cool, just like you!" Teto smiled, her wings beating. "The three of you can be my knights. No...I want all of my friends to be my knights! And I can be a princess, just like in the picture books."

"The picture books are stupid, Teto." Ritsu sniffed. "That's why we got rid of them. They were about humans. And you're our queen. Not a princess."

"Yeah. They scared me a little..." Teto sighed. "But I want to be a princess."

"You already are a queen. I always say you're one."

"Yeah, but I'm not really a princess. Hey!" Teto smiled. "Once we've gotten rid of all the scary humans, can you give me a crown? We'll go to that palace they talked about in the books, and crown me!" She twirled around. "Then I'll be a princess!"

"You'd be a queen."

"But I want to be a princess!"

Ritsu sighed, rolling their eyes. "Fine, fine. You can be a princess."

"Yay!" Teto cheered. "Thanks, Ritsu!"

Ritsu nodded. "And...I'll skip on Ruko. That idiot can't do anything but sleep."

Teto nodded. "If you say so...I think they're cool!"

Ritsu suppressed a sigh. "Tei might be all right though. But make sure she doesn't do too much."

"Got it!" Teto nodded. "You can count on me!"

Ritsu sighed out loud this time. "No...you can count on me. You're the queen."

"Yeah..." Teto sighed. "I guess. And it's princess!"

"I know, Queen Teto."


	7. Gakupo II

Gakupo shifted in his seat, crossing his arms. This felt so annoying...he did want to save the world, but he despised Yamaha. He couldn't trust them. Well, at least some things were being explained. Like what the hell the monsters were, for one.

Miriam cleared her throat, and pushed a strand of white-blonde hair behind her ear. "Right. The creatures you were fighting...Rin-san, what you saw proves a theory we at Yamaha have had for a long time."

"What was the theory?" The blonde leaned forwards, her large white bow quivering.

Miriam cast a disapproving glance at the girl, but continued. "Something is controlling the monsters. We had captured one once for interrogation purposes, and it said things that seemed to imply that, but the sight of a humanoid implies that the theory is correct."

"And?" Gakupo frowned. This information could be important-no, it had to be. Even so, he couldn't trust anything out of their mouths.

"It identified itself as an UTAU." Miriam said.

Gakupo frowned. This was a confusing development. "Which is?"

Miriam pursed her pale lips. "We do not know either, but we can assume it was their organization. We are investigating."

"Good." Gakupo leaned back, trying to intimidate her. If he could...no, this just felt weird. It wasn't  _honorable_ to try and manipulate people, and this was making him think uncomfortably of vines and his sister's crying face.

Miriam clicked her tongue. "It said that their plan is to eradicate all human life."

He heard gasps from the rest. So that's what they meant...and it was a noble goal, to save the human race. But...he couldn't condone what these people did in the name of this. He would still turn on them. He had to-he couldn't bear the thought of working with these monsters.

"That is all." Miriam put her hands in her lap. "I will update on the situation when there is further progress."

* * *

Gakupo stared at the dark ceiling, trying to not think about anything that had happened that day and failing. He had managed to put it out of his thoughts during the day, but now it was just him and his thoughts in the darkness, and he couldn't take it.

He was disgusting. He was a monster. In that moment, he had hurt someone, and he had loved it. To enjoy pain...that wasn't what he should do. A monster, a monster, a fucked-up _thing._ He deserved to die. He was sick, disgusting and sick.

No, no, no. He couldn't think about that. He rolled over onto his side, and tried to bring up a good memory.

That time he'd helped Luka rehearse for her piano recital. He didn't know how to play, but a small audience helped her get ready for bigger things. She just froze up onstage until she played, and even then she didn't know how to interact with people. That sort of thing was how she got her reputation as a 'cool beauty'. She was just shy, but she'd gained the reputation of an ice queen because of that. Almost no one at their school knew that the shy girl was actually a famous pianist. It wasn't a secret-no one even bothered to ask.

Sometimes, it made him angry. She was a genius, she was brilliant-why wouldn't they care about her? He didn't even know music that well, and he could tell that she was a genius when he just sat there and listened. And they didn't care about that-the relaxed smile that was on her face when she played normally, the way she always got so nervous and flustered after something big, and even the way she smuggled sushi backstage. No one cared. The only one who knew how amazing she was in every way was a guy who didn't even play the music she loved so much.

Then again,he did know music. The magic worked on singing.

_yes yes scream more i want to see you in pain_

Gakupo's fists tightened in the sheets, and he tried not to scream. He had to go back to the good memories...

Gakupo got no sleep that night.

* * *

At school that day, it was all he could do to stay awake. He almost fell asleep in his first class, but was awakened by Gumi stomping on his foot.

He kept glancing at Luka, but he knew he couldn't do this. Luka would be in danger from him if they had continued dating. It was a favor to her to do this. For now, she should be safe.

For now.

At this point, he wasn't really tired. He'd gone beyond that. Every time he almost nodded off, visions of the pain he had wanted to cause others flashed in his head and he jolted awake. He'd even tried to take sleeping pills that night, but they hadn't worked.

He staggered to class, leaning on Gumi. He shouldn't rely on anyone like this, but it was so tiring...he could barely walk. Hereally was disgusting.

He heard a crash behind him, and turned, eyes half-open.

"Greetings.  _Vocaloids._ " A person stood there, lacy violet dress blowing around them and red hair flying in the wind. They spat the word with enough venom to make Gakupo wake up fully for a moment.

Other students were staring at them, and  _shit._  He couldn't transform. Neither could Gumi.

Both of them stared at the other, who took a step forwards, and smirked. "With your /precious humans./ Disgusting creatures. Which one should I blow up first?" They flicked a violet-nailed finger-

" _Even though I'm to become sea foam, I love you. After dissolving in the sky and the ocean, I'll watch over you._ " The voice was beautiful, and Gakupo stared.

He knew that voice.

He'd heard Luka sing before.

Boots clicked on the ground, and he saw Luka walk towards the Utau, dressed in some kind of black dress-no, it was a top and skirt. Her headband had taken on some kind of gold designs, and her face was cold.

Or that's what someone else would think. To Gakupo, he could see her holding back tears. He felt the air grow colder as she walked towards them.

The redhead grinned. "Ah, so you're going to be the one who wants to fight me? Good, I was getting bored." They folded their arms. "Go on. I'll wait for your silly slow attacks."

Luka nodded, and flung her arms out, her hair and clothes blowing in a wind that had shown up as soon as she had started singing. _"I wanted to be closer to the starry sky at the bottom of the ocean, I longed for the day to come to me in the ocean."_  With every word she said, bubbles appeared around her, floating in the air.  _"Under thick clouds in the waves, first feelings in my life, how heartbreaking love is..."_  She gestured, and the bubbles flew towards the redhead and hit them, sending them falling backwards into the wall. "Ahem." He heard her voice shaking. "If I say the word, they'll explode. Killing you. I would prefer-"

But they had disappeared.

"Oh my god!" That was Akita Neru. The...oh god. Things were about to get very, very bad. Neru was going to spread the word...Gakupo and Gumi both turned, at which point his sister squealed.

"Neru! You're  _so right!_  Miss! You're-"

Fortunately, Gumi's distraction had allowed Luka to escape.

Gakupo knew exactly where she was.

* * *

Gakupo stared at the door to the music room. He didn't know why he'd followed Luka here. He did know that she always came here whenever she was having trouble, and he'd been here with her many times...

But that was in the past. Gakupo sighed, and reached a hand to the door. He should go. He would just end up hurting her. He turned.

He heard quiet sobbing from inside. Gakupo gritted his teeth. He should just go. He was going to hurt her if he stayed.

He turned towards the door for a moment. No. He would hurt her. She couldn't trust him.

That was right...

He walked away, trying not to listen or look back.

* * *

Teto gasped, hugging the redhead. "You almost died! And you're all bruised! Ritsu-chan, you absolutely totally cannot go out there any more! Just send some of our pets. That will do it."

Ritsu groaned. "...if I have to."

"Also! Wait. I want them to get me some kind of present! What-I know what it should be! You get the pets to buy me a really pretty dress from the humans!" The magenta-haired girl practically bounced up and down.

"Of course, Princess. I'll go help them-"

"No! I don't want you to get hurt!" Teto glared at her. "We'll send someone else with them."


	8. Len III

Len sighed. This was crazy. Not just crazy, but stupid. Then again, considering how trustworthy Miriam seemed to be, it was probably a good idea that Rin had dragged him on a shopping trip with that Gumi girl. Still  _completely insane._

Gumi practically bounced up and down. "So. Rin-chan. I have to tell you guys something! I'm sure Gakupo-nii and Luka-san will tell everyone at the meeting, which is why I went along with this stupid thing. We should be with Miriam..." The green-haired girl bit her lip.

Len's sister shrugged, golden hair brushing her shoulders. "Yeah, but I wanted to be friends with you. So let's do this."

Len sighed.  _Girls._  "First, why the hell did you guys bring me? Second, Gumi, what were you going to tell us?"

"Well, we need people to carry our bags...but Luka transformed!" Gumi grinned at them. "And..."

"And?" Len asked. He had to at least try to keep his sister and Gumi on topic.

"And people saw her."

Len stopped in his tracks, and stared at Gumi. Rin gasped.

"What do you mean?" Len tried to keep his voice quiet. People seeing them like that...

"The only reason I agreed to go on this was so that the three of us could try to do something about the people. Try to talk to them..." Gumi shrugged. "And maybe see if we could get our own fanclubs!"

"What?" Len stared at her.

Rin squealed, a wide smile on her face. "Gumi-san, that would be so cool! We should totally do that! Some kind of publicity thing!"

What was wrong with them? "You're...idiots! Do you even know what transforming is like?!" His hands curled into fists. Gumi's smile faltered for a second, but she seemed to shake it off. Rin, however, stared at him like he had said something horrible. Maybe he had, but Len couldn't stop himself. He hissed the words. "We can't have fanclubs. Ever. Because, Rin, you have no fucking idea what it's like! You don't know what it's like when we transform. Do you want pictures of you crying and wanting to die all over the internet? 'Ooooh, he's so cute when he's trying to stand because he wants to die so much it's hard for him to move!'" Len wanted to stop himself from saying that, but he couldn't. Rin just stared at him in shock, betrayed. His sister...but he was right, wasn't he? He was. No matter how guilty he felt, he was the one in the right.

"Len! Stop!" Gumi shoved herself in between the twins. "Can't you see she's about to cry? How can you do this? You're her  _brother!_ " Were those tears in her eyes?

"Really, Gumi? Really? I thought you'd be on my side. You know what it feels like. Rin doesn't. How does that even work?" Len's eyes began to fill with tears. He wanted to stop, knowing he was embarrassing himself and hurting Rin and Gumi, but he  _couldn't._  God, he was so useless..."Why does she get to be happy and not us?" His voice was raising.

"Stop it! Stop it! Stop it!" Tears were running down Gumi's cheeks now. "I-I'm not jealous of Rin! Not at all!"

"You are! We all are!" Len was screaming now.

"Sir."

Both stopped, as if they had been frozen. Len felt a cold sensation of dread in the pit of his stomach as he turned. A mall security guard was standing there.

"I...did you hear anything?" Gumi gasped, her hands covering her mouth. "That was a very-"

"I only heard yelling. You have to stop. You're disturbing the peace."

Gumi smiled brightly. "Of course! Now, you can move on. We won't fight anymore."

Len was frozen.

After the security guard had walked away, Gumi stared at Len, tear tracks still on her face. Then, she drew back her arm, and smacked him across the face, hard enough to knock him backwards.

"I-" He began.

"Don't do that. Ever again. Come on, Rin-chan. Let's go off. Together. You are  _not invited._ " She took his sister by the hand, dragging her off.

Len just stood there, staring at their retreating backs.

He had just said horrible things to his sister. He'd heard her crying all last night, and he'd insulted her...How could he have done that? How? He walked away. He needed somewhere else to be. Somewhere where no one could hear him... He bumped into someone as he ran blindly, and heard a thud as they fell down.

"Shit...I mean, sorry..."

The person he had bumped into smiled. "Don't worry...ah." She stared at him.

Len might have stared back. The girl he'd bumped into was frankly beautiful, with pale skin and soft white hair. Her eyes were a deep red.

Something about her was familiar, but Len couldn't place what.

"Er..." He felt heat flood to his face.

"Oh, it's nothing." The girl smiled. "Mmmm...have you been crying?" Before Len could say anything, the girl grabbed his shoulders, and  _l_ _icked his cheek._

"What the-"

"Oh, you have. I'm so sorry. You should get rid of people who make you cry, there's no use for them. See you around, Len-kun! There's something I have to do!" The girl waved, and ran off.

When she had ran away, Len could only ask one question. When had he told her his name?

And then, there was a crash. Len ran towards where he'd heard it-hadn't that been where Rin and Gumi had gone?

He burst in, and saw Rin huddling behind a overturned clothes rack while something that looked like a mechanical spider was ripping apart the rest of the store.

He had to transform-

Rin opened her mouth and began to sing, but it wasn't the song she'd sung last. It was just one long high, note. Len felt himself transforming, too. What the hell? This didn't make sense...that wasn't how magic worked, didn't it?

 _"The promised eternal dance between us causes our hearts to fill with lies. Our flaxen hair reflects in the mirror as we take turns following each other..."_  She stepped forwards, spinning as glass shards flew towards the monster. He noticed a strange look on her face and a hint of red on her cheeks, but paid no mind to it.

Len walked forwards, and felt the words form in his head.  _"In our beds we both tremble."_  He then felt the emotion.

Oh, god. It wasn't sadness. It was...lust. He wanted to take Rin right there and-no, he didn't even want to think about doing /that/ to her. She was his sister! His sister! God, he was so disgusting...

 _"We come into contact as if our hands were tied with thread..."_  He waved his hand, and more glass shards pierced the monster. It reached out for them, but disappeared.

Gumi gasped. "Holy shit!"

As the group of bystanders gasped and turned to look at them, Rin and Len ran out the door.

They quickly transformed back as they ran into a deserted corner, and Len looked away from her.

This was...disgusting. That shouldn't have happened. This was...no. He was disgusting. How could he have thought of his sister like that...he was sick, sick and fucked up. He deserved to die.

He ran away from her.

"Wait!" He heard her call after him, but he couldn't listen. He couldn't...

This was disgusting. He hated this. What the hell...

Whatever. That was two more who had been seen. Hopefully they couldn't place their faces and hair. That would be bad.

* * *

"Teto-chan."

Teto turned. "Ritsu-oh, it's you."

Tei Sukone twirled around. "Yep! Princess Teto, I met someone very important today."

"Really? I'm so glad!" Teto squealed. "Like Nii-chan?"

"No, not really." Tei grinned. "Even though the stupid Vocaloids destroyed your pet, it still got you a really pretty dress." Tei smiled.

"That's great!" Teto squealed.

"Also, I'll need some more of your pets. Me and Ritsu have got a lot to do...like getting my love." She smiled, clasping her hands to her cheek.

"I doubt it."

"Ted-sama!" Tei gasped.

"Nii-chan!" Teto tackled the young man in front of her.

Ted gritted his teeth. "Yes, yes, Teto-chan. I'm happy to see you too. Now..."

Tei swallowed. "What is it?"

Ted waved a hand. "You have no need to participate in our project for now."

"What!? But my love-" Tei gasped.

Ted rolled his crimson eyes. "Yes, yes, very sweet and all that. But he is weighing this down. Ritsu-kun has to do this on their own. They have been repeatedly failing, and I am disappointed. Won't you tell them that? From now on, you two can't help them."

Teto swallowed. "But...won't Ritsu-chan be sad?"

"They can do it, I'm sure." Ted rubbed the younger girl's head. "But they have to prove it. Teto, why don't you go play with your creatures?"

"Yep! Got it, nii-chan!" Teto vanished.

"Tei-kun. You can see your 'love' if Ritsu proves their worth-or if another course of action happens. I didn't want to talk about this in front of Teto, but..."

"They could die." Tei grinned. "And then I'd see him again..."

"Tei-kun. Stop that line of thought right now." Ted hissed. "If you sabotage their mission, it would be only too easy to dispose of you permanently."

Tei nodded. "Y-Yes, sir."

"Now. Go inform Ritsu, and let's watch this play out." The magenta-haired man smirked.


End file.
